There's this romanticized version of the entrepreneurial journey. The young hero of the story wakes up one morning with a brilliant idea and then (after a few little fights here and there) has built a billion-dollar company.

But that's not how things work in the real world. What's usually not shown in the movies is that most founders try lots of things before they finally find something that sticks.

Here's one example from Alex West.

Or just look at all the stuff Josh Pigford launched before he started Baremetrics.

Since there is no way to tell in advance which idea will really work, you just have to keep trying. It's very common that founders run 10+ unsuccessful experiments before they find their thing. And I don't know anyone who launched just one product and instantly became succesful.

I'm not telling you this to discourage you. Instead, I think it's essential to develop a realistic picture of what entrepreneurship looks like in the real world so that you're prepared for things to come.

If you believe that successful founders instantly became successful at their first attempt, chances are high that you'll give up soon.

But if you understand that everyone, no matter how brilliant, needs multiple attempts, you'll be able to say after yet another failed attempt, "That's simply how the game works", and keep trying.

This kind of attitude is the most important entrepreneurial trait. Those who have it, eventually succeed, while those who don't usually quit before they hit gold.

The following cheesy cartoon comes to mind.